Kevin Greatrex

Kevin W. Greatrex

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 2", Weight unknown

• Born June 1, 1945

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Kevin Greatrex was a long-time first baseman for South Australia, playing in 1963 and from 1965-1982. He managed the team in 1983.

In 1967, Greatrex was with the Wytheville Reds and Tampa Tarpons, two minor-league affiliates of the Cincinnati Reds. Fellow Aussie Dick Shirt was his teammate in both places.

By his own account, three professional Japanese teams offered Greatrex a contract in 1971, but during the warm-up series in Korea, he suffered broken bones in his hand, which stopped further negotiations.

Greatrex won the Helms Award as the 1963 and 1966 Claxton Shield MVP (the only two-time winner through 2014), then won the 1972 Claxton Shield batting title. He was on the first Australian national team to play in a global competition, the 1971 Asian Championship. He won Bronze with them in the 1975 Asian Championship, their first medal in an Asian Championship. In his final international event, the 1978 Amateur World Series, he hit .242/.359/.333 as Australia's main 1B and part-time left fielder. He was with the Aussies for the 1980 Amateur World Series. He coached for Australia in the 1985 Intercontinental Cup.

Greatrex has also served as a major-league scout. In 1986, he helped bring Dave Nilsson to the attention of the Milwaukee Brewers, who signed the young Aussie in 1987.

In 2005, Greatrex made the first class of the Baseball Australia Hall of Fame; he was one of five inductees from the 1968-1988 era, joining Neil Page, Larry Home, David Mundy and John Swanson.

Sources: Australian Hall of Fame, Defunct IBAF site

Related Sites

Personal page on Kevin Greatrex's corporate website